JaderBug Posted July 1, 2008 Report Share Posted July 1, 2008 I was just wondering what suggestions anyone might have for celebrating the 4th with the dogs? I was planning on taking Jade to the local parade, there's usually a lot of dogs along the parade route. Thought it'd be a good socializing experience as well. Also, what are some preventative measures for people to help their dog through the terror of fireworks? Keep them crated? Try and distract them? Cover their ears? Anyone have any fun dog-related activities panned for over the 3-day weekend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
afrancis Posted July 1, 2008 Report Share Posted July 1, 2008 Also, what are some preventative measures for people to help their dog through the terror of fireworks? Keep them crated? Try and distract them? Cover their ears? Oh yes. Hell. That is tonight (we get a jump on you yankees ) beginning at 10:05 (and lasting g.d know's how long) when all the sky will come falling down and Skye will pant, pant, pant, and try to squeeze herself in the smallest space that is away from all windows and doors and literally shake from head to toe. We go into the "panic room" (aka the bedroom) close the windows, put on the a/c and the tv and pretend its not happening. This is fairly new to her (the panic, that is) and short of medication (don't really want to go that route), this is all I can think of Ailsa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerfulgazelle Posted July 1, 2008 Report Share Posted July 1, 2008 Hmmm. We have been kicking around the same question. We'll be keeping the dogs clear of the parades in our community because every parade involves the fire and police as parade participants. And, as they roll the cruisers and fire engines down the parade route, they flip the sirens on. The little "whoop-whoop" from the cop cars isn't a big thing, but the fire trucks waaaaaaiiiillll the whole way. We're about a half block from the fire station, and Sol BA-ROO-ROO-ROOOOOOOOs whenever the trucks go out on a run. Hate to subject the crowd at the parade to Sollers' full-voice hound-y bay fest. Despite laws to the contrary, folks around here do all sorts of fireworks in the front yards/back yards...don't know yet what these two dogs of ours will do with that. Old Dog used to try to stuff all 70 lbs or so of himself under the back of the toilet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted July 1, 2008 Report Share Posted July 1, 2008 We might pack the dogs up in our car and try to find someplace quieter. Our neighbor two doors down sets off fireworks all day and all night on the 4th. If we can't do that, we will have the TV going, fans going, and the dogs will chose thier own hiding spots. I'll try to get them up early enough to go out and potty before it all starts. Then they will probably not go outside until the next morning, unless we do manage to find a quieter location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jedismom Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Well not having Jedi last year, I wasn't really sure how'd he react. About 2 weeks ago our neighbor started letting fireworks off as a nightly "fun" neighborhood activity for the kids. This seem to coincide with our nightly walks. Well lo and behold I seem to have a BC that is an anomaly. He LOVES fireworks. He actually wants to get closer to join in with all the hootin and hollerin. He also totally ignores thunder. I'm just going to keep my fingers crossed that this never changes. The flag pole down the street though....scariest thing in the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaisingRiver Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 River is my scaredy-dog. I'm keeping her in the half bathroom with the fan going all night. It should help drown out the popping/whistling noises. I may put a radio in there as well if the fan isn't doing the trick. She's 2.5yrs and has only become scared of sharp/loud unexpected noises in the last year. She was fine as a puppy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms.DaisyDuke Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Oh yeah, I forgot that was tonight for us....MAN. Daisy isn't too worried about them since we pretty much have fireworks for about 3 weeks straight. First Canada Day then 10 days of Stampede. We are close enough to the grounds that they sound like they are next door. Every night at midnight. Gladly they don't bother her. Thunder does, but I think it's mostly the barometric pressure? When it thunders, I make her sit and show me her nose and her chin and give me high five (silly stuff, yes, but it works) until the rumble passes and then praise her and walk away. Granted, fireworks are more of a continuous thing, distraction may not work esp. if the dog is very fearful! If I could, I would head out of the city for sure, Kristine has the right idea!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbc1963 Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 I was just dealing with a haruffing dog under my feet because someone 2 miles away is setting off fireworks when I found this thread! Around here they're illegally set off for a month before and after... Yeesh. Buddy likes to be under my bed when they're going off. Not sure if it helps a whole lot, but he seems to feel safe there. I've been thinking, though, about trying to build him a "safe room" in the basement: a closed in wooden crate with some serious insulation around it. Buddy likes to go down cellar when the noise scares him (denning instinct?) and that's why I'm thinking about the basement. But, he also needs to be near me, and I don't wanna be down there. Maybe I'll build him a bedroom den. Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 We've got a display going on right now down the street, too. Dean is a mess. I really hate this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bo Peep Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Worst time of the year. I put mine in their crates, usually where it is dark with music playing. They feel safe there. Be careful if your dog is one that "enjoys" them too much. I had a mutt once that bit at the sparklers. We really had to watch the old guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boon Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 This will be Blues first 4th, Im not sure how he will respond? I will most likely crate him with T.V. on at first, then turn off T.V. and see how he is doing, if he doesnt seem scared Ill just give him free house roam, but I wont let him outside. It kinda funny and a little sad but last year on the 4th my neighboors Pug (who is let just say abit chunky) wedged himself between the back of the toilet and the wall too the point we had to butter him up to get him out. What was even funnier is the whole time he is licking at the butter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ancient_Dog Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 We usually put on an action movie and turn up the surroundsound louder than normal. The dogs have a hard time distinguishing the car crashes, explosions, etc on the DVD from the reall fireworks down the block. It works most of the time.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shatchp Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 River is my scaredy-dog. I'm keeping her in the half bathroom with the fan going all night. It should help drown out the popping/whistling noises. I may put a radio in there as well if the fan isn't doing the trick. She's 2.5yrs and has only become scared of sharp/loud unexpected noises in the last year. She was fine as a puppy. Ollie was fine last year at 6 months or so...but this year, first sign of trouble, he was cuddling with his new friend the toilet in our little dark half bath. We had a pretty good thunderstorm this week as well, with fireworks going off in between thunder claps...he wasn't terribly pleased with that... been on edge all week. Silly humans, with their penchant for blowing things up... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bo Peep Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 We usually put on an action movie and turn up the surroundsound louder than normal. The dogs have a hard time distinguishing the car crashes, explosions, etc on the DVD from the reall fireworks down the block. It works most of the time.... This really is an excellent idea. I think I will try it this year. doG knows I've tried everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skyler Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Im not sure how I got so lucky like JedisMom either. Both Koda and Zak couldnt care less about thunder or the fireworks that have been going off around here; which is strange since Koda is so high strung. Now the 4th might be a little intense and Im expecting some barking perhaps. But just tonight, people were letting off fireworks while Koda and I were taking a walk. Some large bottle rockets were being let off and all I got from Koda was an alerted "what was that?"...but no fear issues. On our way back they were letting off some huge sparkle thing on the ground and strangely enough he went into the crouch and began moving toward it while herding it. I have no idea so dont ask... Every other BC I have ever had HATED the 4th of July and always hid at my feet during storms. There is no way to cover it up with loud TV or music so dont even bother. Dont forget that our dogs can hear 20 times better than we can and the low frequency booms from the bigger fireworks cannot be masked over. Best thing I found was to just be on the floor with them trying to have fun. I never eased them with coos and hugs but rather acted as though nothing was wrong. Just be extra fun that night.....and take them out early to finish up as someone else mentioned. Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bc4pack Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Try some melatonin and ,if you can, have a treat party/ play time with every 'boom'.... if a pup is REALLY bad I would be talking to my vet re: some xanax or valium... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted July 2, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 I haven't made up my mind yet what I want to do with Jade... this will be her first 4th as well. She does really well with thunderstorms, I don't think they have any effect on her at all (unless she's outside going potty before the rain arrives), but a few weeks ago there were fireworks going off for whatever reason, there's always stuff going on in Ames. She wasn't happy about them... she ran around wulfing and was very nervous and couldn't just sit still, so I got a ball out and played a very frantic game of fetch with her, which seemed to do a very good job of keeping her mind off of the cracks and booms. I'm debating where I should be for the fireworks. I'm planning on going home home to the parade in the morning and they usually have fireworks at night. I would leave Jade at my folk's house in her crate with the radio on for the fireworks, etc. and she would be 6 miles away in any direction from the fireworks, but my DB (not quite DH) wants to come back to Ames to watch the fireworks, where Jade would be crated less than a mile away from the spectacle. I would rather opt for the first option, but DB's opinion is 'she's never going to learn or get used to it, she's gotta learn sometime!!' which I suppose likens to teaching a kid to swim by throwing them in the deep end. not sure about that yet... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nik Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Pache is terrified of thunderstorms, gunshots (we tend to get lots of that around here w/ people target shooting their rifles), fireworks, nailguns, anything that makes a boom or pop. I can literally count down after a boom how long it will take him to get to the backdoor if he's outside when it happens. I just let him in and ignore all that is going on and let him find his safeplace. I guess I'm lucky in the respect that as long as he is inside it ends up being no big deal for the most part. He may come hide between my legs at times, but as soon as I tell him its o.k. he goes on about his buisiness again. On nights like New Year's Eve and July 4th we just try and turn a t.v. up to help w/ the noise, but it really is a tense night for all of us because there is just so much noise on a constant basis. I don't think we are at the point of medicating yet thank goodness but it definitely can be quite a nite. Last year we let the kids shoot fireworks and all the dogs seemed to "tolerate" all of it as long as they were in the house and in my room. This year the kids are just gonna have to do w/o fireworks (not because of the dogs though). Good luck to all who have fearful dogs and may you make it through this holiday w/o pulling your hair out!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurae Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Noise sensitivity can develop (and usually presents) a little later in life, usually somewhere around 2 or 3. When Sophie was a pup one Fourth of July, I was working a booth at an outdoor festival, and she was with me that day. There was a big fireworks display in the evening, and she had no problems sitting on the blanket with us enjoying the show, even after being out and about all day socializing with the festival goers. A year or two later, she became highly sound sensitive (developed strong fear of thunder, gun shots, and fireworks). Friday (and the following days until people use up their fireworks) will suck for us. But I've always wondered if that early exposure, which I thought went so well at the time, was too much for such a young pup and perhaps contributed to her later sound sensitivity. Probably it didn't, but maybe it did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bc4pack Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 I count myself fortunate... my storm phobic dog isn't afraid of noise. I live quite close to the local PD firing range and Molly actually joins me of her own volition out front, to watch the neighbours shooting off the BIG fireworks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted July 2, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 ...DB's opinion is 'she's never going to learn or get used to it, she's gotta learn sometime!!' which I suppose likens to teaching a kid to swim by throwing them in the deep end. not sure about that yet... What does anyone think about this statement or this sort of thinking/reasoning??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skyler Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 What does anyone think about this statement or this sort of thinking/reasoning??? In the context it was presented in by the husband (If I understood correctly) I dont agree with. A sound sensitive dog isnt going to get used to it by themselves....especially if the dog is alone and they are at the fireworks show. That is just going to cause the dog to freak out. Depending on the severity of the phobia it could physically damage the dog because it would be crated. If a dog is frantic and wanted to get somewhere else it could easily cause the dog to try and rip the cage apart to get out. This could cause a number of injuries including cuts and broken teeth. However, to help assist a dog with overcoming fear of loud noises there has to be the opportunity to experience the situation. Its what you do with that situation that makes the difference. Being with the dog and working the dog through it with positive reward is the only way to go IMO. Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vicki G. Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 I would like to add a cautionary note- in 2003 my MIL was dog sitting for me on July 1st. We live out in the country and road is ~18 acres from MIL house. She let Rogue, my 3 yr old english mastiff out to potty and neighbors one farm over were having party with professional type fireworks. I got a call saying that Rogue had run away in terror, did not recall, and was later found 1 mile away hit by a car. She was brindle and was difficult to see at night, so they didn't find her until later. The person who hit her did not stop and she died. One of my neighbors was sporting a dented bumper next day (Rogue was 170 lbs). I wouldn't have blamed him, but it would have been nice if he would have stopped. I had a difficult time thinking of her by herself. So however you handle the fireworks keep them close and under close supervision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted July 2, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 Vicki, I am sorry for your loss, how terrible. A friend of the family had an aussie several years ago, she was always really skittish and you couldn't really trust her, and she was terrified of thunderstorms, and of three dogs, she was the only one that wasn't allowed in the house. After a particularly bad storm, Sis went missing, and they weren't terribly concerned. About a month later, my dad and I pulled onto the property of a different family friend's, and here was Sis (now named Maggie)- the properties were about 3 miles appart. They said they found her hiding in their corn field and it took two weeks of bribing with bacon and other meats to get her to come out- she never was quite right. Skyler- that was kind of my opinion as well. Stubborn DB... there are more ways than 'old school' (or just plain ignorant!) to deal with dogs. I think I may have to miss the fireworks this year to play frantic fetch with Jade so she doesn't lose it... I suppose I can live with that!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vicki G. Posted July 2, 2008 Report Share Posted July 2, 2008 It was a difficult situation but we learned a valuable lesson- our dogs are never off leash outside for potty breaks this week- it seems everynight we hear bursts of fireworks. My other dogs don't seem bothered but I don't want to take that chance. I think a game of fetch and background noise is a great idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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